1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an information processing apparatus, a control method of the information-processing apparatus, a control program for executing the control method, and a storage medium of storing the control program. In particular, the present invention relates to an information processing apparatus which is equipped with plural storage devices, a control method of the information processing apparatus, a control program for executing the control method, and a storage medium of storing the control program.
2. Related Background Art
In recent years, the capacity of a storage device such as a hard disk or the like becomes large remarkably. For this reason, it is examined aiming at commercial manufacturing of a small-sized and large-capacity portable storage device such as the Microdrive, a memory according to the iVDR (Information Versatile Disk for Removable usage), or the like. Generally, many of such storage devices use a general purpose interface standard such as the ATA/ATAPI (Advanced Technology Attachment/Advanced Technology Attachment Packet Interface) standard, the SCSI (Small Computer System Interface) standard, the PCMCIA (Personal Computer Memory Card International Association) interface standard, the USB (Universal Serial Bus) interface standard, the IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers) 1394, etc. Therefore, since the general purpose interface standard can be shared by many kinds of devices of supporting this standard, the many kinds of small-sized and large-capacity portable storage devices are in widespread use. On one hand, since the general purpose interface standard is used, a third person can easily access the data stored in the storage device, whereby there is a problem that the data stored in the storage device is leaked to the third person who is not intended by the user.
Consequently, for example, a hard disk which actually has an access limitation function based on a password defined by an ATA/ATAPI standard security mode feature set, and a personal computer which is equipped with the relevant hard disk are available.
Moreover, a storage device which actually has, in addition to the access limitation function, a function to register plural users and limit a writing or reading operation with respect to each of the registered users is proposed (e.g., Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. H11-296436).
However, although the storage device can prevent the third person not intended by the user from wrongly or unjustly accessing the data stored in the relevant storage device, an allowable or qualified user can of course access the stored data. Moreover, after the user is once allowed to access the stored data, the relevant user can freely move and copy the accessed data.
Therefore, for example, there is a possibility that the user carelessly moves and/or copies the data to which high concealment or secrecy is necessary (called high-concealment data) stored in the storage device of high security level, such as a storage device having a user authentication function, etc., to the storage device having no security function, as the user is unconscious of deterioration of the security level. In consequence, there is a risk that the high-concealment data is leaked to the third party not intended by the user.
If the large-capacity portable storage device is further in widespread use and frequently used to store the data and move the data among the plural devices, it becomes difficult for the user to adequately manage and control the storage device, whereby the risk of data leakage due to the careless data movement and/or copy further increases.